


It Went Down Like This

by TGP



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Canon - Movie, Gen, Pepper wants to strangle someone, Tony is a dick
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-22
Updated: 2012-10-22
Packaged: 2017-11-16 19:32:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/543061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TGP/pseuds/TGP
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Tell me, Miss Potts, what are you career plans?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Went Down Like This

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write about how Pepper came to work for Tony. So I did. :)

Pepper Potts didn't know why she was being called up to the head office. There were titters behind her after the summons had been handed out, a few girls who hadn't appreciated being out shined smiling nastily. Pepper couldn't recall anything she'd done spectacularly well or spectacularly badly lately that would explain this. She tried not to worry, but this was her _job_ and how on earth was she going to keep supporting her parents if she lost it and... and...

 

She took a deep breath. She was not going to have a nervous fit if she had anything to do with it.

 

Standing up, Pepper pushed her chair up to her desk, set her computer to the pass word locked screen savor, and did her best to look as if she were not terrified. The hall to the elevator looked so very long, but she started with one step after the other and made it faster than she'd intended. However, the doors silently closed her off and she felt a little better not to have eyes on her. Pepper glanced upward and counted out the few little dents that had so far escaped anyone else's notice. She'd always counted because it seemed to force the world to make a little more sense and it helped down out her mother's hysterical crying when something set her off. Pepper closed her eyes. Not the time for that.

 

The ring of the elevator reaching its destination startled Pepper badly. She smiled nervously at herself and stepped out to face the music. Except that Mr. Stark's office was empty. Well, not empty of _things_ – several of which could use a little dusting or rearranging; it didn't look like Mr. Stark subscribed much to Feng Shui – but certainly empty of people. Pepper stood patiently before his desk a few moments, glancing at this or that, and just could not help from straightening the messy stack of papers sitting on one side. And then the pens, lord the pens. And after she'd done that, well, she might as well make the rest of the desk tidy. Some ten minutes later, just as she was adjusting the tilt of the monitor to something that would promote good posture:

 

“You know, most women that handsy are at least nearly naked.”

 

Pepper jumped and whirled around. Standing near the elevator was Tony Stark. At twenty-one, Stark still looked pretty gangly. His face could have used some definition and it looked like he was trying to grow some facial hair but it wasn't working out very well. His hair was a wild mess that he didn't seem to know what to do with. On the other hand, his suit was absolutely perfectly tailored and his sunglasses, sitting low on his nose, were so outrageously pricey that even a woman of modest means could tell.

 

“Sorry, Mr. Stark,” she managed finally as the full impact of her boss catching her futzing with his things came down on her.

 

Stark waved her off as he came round the desk and dropped a bag of greasy take out onto it, mussing up the papers she had painstakingly restacked. Pepper felt a flash of annoyance for him, even though her abject terror.

 

“I'm sure it won't hurt anything,” Stark muttered, digging in the thin, paper bag. “How good are you with math?”

 

“I- I'm sorry?”

 

“Math. Specifically accounting. I assume you're good at it since you saw fit to correct me.”

 

Pepper felt the blood rush from her face. Dear God, she was going to lose her job for butting in where she wasn't wanted. It just... She was _good_ at preemptively helping out. It was a hard habit to break! “Sir, I'm-”

 

“Interrupting. Are you always this rude?”

 

She snapped her mouth shut and stared at her shoes as Stark unloaded a portion of fries and dug into them. He sank into his – beautifully plush – chair and sat back, regarding her.

 

“You didn't answer the question, but you don't need to,” he said, waving a fry at her. “You're wasted in the secretarial pool. Ever thought of moving up?”

 

Pepper wasn't sure if she was meant to answer but she did at least look at him as he munched more fries. One thing was for sure, whoever was attending to Mr. Stark's personal needs should have been paying better attention. There was a spot on the left lapel that she couldn't couldn't stop staring at.

 

“Tell me, Miss Potts, what are you career plans?”

 

“I...” Pepper lifted her gaze from his suit and regarded his thoughtful expression. “I assumed...”

 

“Wrong. At least, now it is, whatever you were going to say.” Stark dug for the hamburger. “Mandatory promotion. Report to, well, _me_ in approximately... _now_. Good afternoon, Miss Potts.”

 

For a moment, Pepper was caught between the warring impulse to slap the man stupid and to grin like a loon. She did neither. Instead, she drew out her PDA and said quite primly, “Good afternoon, Mr. Stark. I'll retrieve your schedule.”

 

Stark glanced at her over his hamburger. He took a bite, chewed, and swallowed. And then he smiled.

 

Pepper decided she wouldn't slap him today. But maybe tomorrow.


End file.
